To say that the first half of the 2018-19 season did not go the way that the Philadelphia Flyers or their fans anticipated may be the understatement of the still-young year. Not only has the team failed to build on its 97-point performance last season — the wheels have also completely fallen off for the organization as a whole. General manager Ron Hextall was fired just after Thanksgiving. Head coach Dave Hakstol was relieved of his duties three weeks later. The once-stable foundations of the Flyers have been rocked to their core.

The stewards of the team weren’t removed for no reason. On the ice, the Flyers have largely floundered, and now find themselves submerged in an eight-game losing skid that has dropped them to dead last in the Metropolitan Division, a whopping 15 points out of the final playoff spot in the conference. Only the Ottawa Senators hold a worse record in the NHL than Philadelphia at the moment.